Hitchhiker
by hollyandhearts
Summary: CASTIEL/OC! Set at the end of "Goodbye Stranger" in Season 8, so there will be season 8 spoilers. Based around canon events, but some warping of the storyline here and there. No major changes, however. Homeless Katie is left with nobody and nowhere to go, that is, until she meets Castiel and gets thrown into his mess.


Maroon Converses kicked up red clay dust as the trekked down an empty back road. Katie was used to traveling by foot, her red backpack stuffed full of all she owned and a determined smile on her face. She had cut her brown hair short and started to wear it back in a red bandana so she wouldn't have to wash it as often. She wasn't sure how long she had been walking. Katie didn't own a phone or a laptop or even a watch. Her feet ached as she sped up her pace. She would have to walk faster if she was going to make it into a town before it got dark. From the splashes of pink and yellow in the sky, she could tell it was going to grow dark soon. Katie always had to rely on signs like this to survive. She didn't have a car.

Thinking of just braving it in the woods another night, she stopped walking to catch her breath. Her backpack was heavy, and her back ached with pain. She sat down on the side of the road, not caring that more dirt was going to be all over her shorts. It would just blend in with all the rest. Panting and sweating, she slung her backpack off her shoulders beside her. Katie unzipped the biggest pocket and pulled out a full-size calendar. It had been 79 cents at a convince store and it had pictures of cartoon characters she had never seen before on it. She flipped it open to May and black x's told her that it was nearing the end of the month. She would have to start buying summer clothes again, but with what money, she didn't know.

Sighing at the prospect of having to walk again, she looked up as she heard the sound of an engine coming her way. A blue and white bus was inching its way up the dirt hill, tires struggling against the thick clay. She stood up quickly and raised her hand out to signal to the driver. The bus came to a screeching halt in front of her. Katie rushed over to the door and the driver opened them. In front of the steering wheel sat a big man with a mustache.

"Can I have a ride?" Katie asked, shrugging.

The driver looked at her fraying t-shirt, dirt covered shorts, and ruined sneakers.

"That will be $9.57 for you," the driver smirked, showing off a row of yellowed teeth.

"But that's not fair. It says right here that it's $5.57," she pointed to the fare sign on the dashboard.

"Yeah," he looked her up and down again, but Katie just held her head up higher.

"I will be paying $5.57 only," she stated defiantly, and held out a crumpled wad of cash.

He grudgingly snatched the money out of her hand and told her, "Fine, but I'm only taking you halfway."

Katie decided that halfway was better than nothing at all so she hopped onto the bus and the door squeaked shut behind her.

The inside of the bus was completely full. Women sat with crying babies in their laps and scooted away at the site of Katie. She wondered if she really looked that bad. She made her way down the aisle of the bus, careful that she didn't track mud or step on bags and purses. There didn't seem to be an empty seat. One man put his newspaper down in an empty seat with a glare so that Katie didn't sit there. She frowned.

The only seat that appeared to be open was next to a man with disheveled brown hair and a wrinkled trench coat and tie. Katie figured he looked about as unkempt as she was, so she made her way up the aisle to him. He stared out of the bus window solemnly. He looked sad, like he had lost something.

The bus jostled. Katie put her hand on the seat in front of him so she wouldn't fall over. The man looked up.

"Can I sit here?" She asked, giving him a hopeful smile. "All the other seats are full."

He just nodded, and turned back to the window. Katie plunked her red backpack into the floor in front of her and sat down. She sat for a moment in silence, wondering if he was going to say anything to her. He didn't, so she asked, "What's your name?"

He looked up from the window and looked at her. Surprisingly, he did not back away from her appearance. Instead, he looked her straight in the eye and replied in a deep, gravelly voice, "My name is Castiel."

Katie decided right then and there that he would be the perfect drawing to add to her collection, so she pulled out a bag of colored pencils and a handheld sharpener. He stared at her, his brow furrowed as she started to sharpen a brown colored pencil.

"Never heard of it," she said, picking up a blue pencil. "It's pretty cool, though. My name's boring, just plain old Katie."

"Katie," he repeated, looking at her with an expression of acknowledgement. This came as a shock. Normally people did not like to look at her at all.

"So where are you from, Castiel?" she asked him. She liked to learn about people and where they came from. He was silent.

"Okay, I understand. You don't want to talk about it," she broke the silence. "Where are you going?" Once again, her question was met with silence.

"I don't know," he replied after a minute or so, his eyes cast downwards in a worried sort of way.

"Oh, so you're a drifter just like me….just going wherever the wind takes you," she concluded, and pulled a sketchpad out from her backpack. She flipped it to a new page.

Castiel leaned over her shoulder to see what she was doing.

"What is that?" he asked, watching as she started to sketch.

"It's my sketchpad," she explained, but Castiel looked just as confused as ever. "I like to draw people I meet, so I'm going to draw you."

Castiel still looked puzzled, but didn't object. He stared mesmerized as her hand swept across the page, drawing the outline of his hair.

"What's in your bag?" she asked him. Katie noticed a green draw-string bag sitting in his lap with what looked like to be a square rock inside of it. He hastily drew it tighter before she had a chance to peek inside.

"I keep a lot of stuff in my bag you know," Katie started. "pencils, paper, gum, calender, etc. This one time I was hitching a ride on a train and-"

"You talk a lot," Castiel interrupted. Katie laughed.

"I've been told that before, yes. But I enjoy learning about people, and you seem interesting. Tell me about yourself. It helps me create the mood of my drawing."

Castiel thought for a moment then asked, "What would you like me to tell you?"

"Anything."

He furrowed his brow in confusion. Katie vaguely wondered what was so confusing about telling her about his life.

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me," he stated finally, looking her in the eye sincerely. Katie laughed, which made Castiel even more puzzled.

"I probably would. One time I met a man who only ate snakes," Katie smiled, but Castiel continued to stare at her. He did that a lot, but Katie wasn't bothered by it. She had seen much, much worse.

Castiel opened his mouth to speak, but all of a sudden the bus came to a screeching halt, throwing Katie and Castiel into the seats in front of them. The lights had sparked off, babies were crying, women were screaming. Katie just sat in the silence, clutching the pencil around her hand so tight it was breaking.

Castiel raised his head.

"Naomi," he stated, rage and fury laced with the word. Katie looked up. A woman with red hair and a business suit stood in the middle of the bus aisle, her arm outstretched.

Castiel jumped up off the seat, a knife in his hand. Katie stood still, watching.

"Give me the demon tablet," she stated through gritted teeth.

"No!" yelled Castiel, clutching the bag in his hands tighter. Naomi rolled her eyes.

"Really, Castiel, how many times are we going to have to do this," she yelled, and lunged toward him, making her way back to the darkened seat.

Castiel quickly leaned down to Katie and spoke in a whisper, "Take it, Katie." He shoved the bag into her hands, her eyes looked up at him terrified. "Take it somewhere safe. Don't let them find you. I will come to you."

He placed his hands on her shoulders and suddenly she was flying. Everything was blinding white, someone was screaming. It took Katie a minute to realize it was her own voice, screaming and yelling for help as she tumbled through the white.

Then suddenly, her hands hit solid ground.


End file.
